Ovary Transplants: A Beacon of Hope for Millions

A German who made history after becoming the first woman to give birth following a whole ovary transplant said in a British newspaper on Saturday that she felt a "sense of completeness".

Susanne Butscher, 39, told the Daily Telegraph that her daughter Maja, named after the Roman goddess of fertility, would give hope to millions of infertile women around the world.

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Infertility is a condition wherein couples fail to achieve pregnancy or if the woman has been unable to carry a pregnancy that results in a live birth.

Recovering from the birth on Tuesday at the Portland Hospital in London, she said: "Being a mother at last is an indescribable feeling. It's been hard to take my eyes off her since she was born.

"I'm so lucky to have had this wonderful opportunity which has given me a sense of completeness I would never have had otherwise.

"I'm happy to be sharing my story with the world to give other women hope who might have similar problems."

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Artificial Insemination is a medical procedure usually used to treat infertility. In this procedure, sperm is placed into a female's vagina, uterus or fallopian tubes by artificial means.

Experts believe the pioneering transplant treatment which Butscher had in the United States last year will benefit women who like her suffer an early menopause.

They believe it could also give new hope to women suffering cancer who undergo chemotherapy or radiotherapy for cancer, and who could freeze one of their ovaries before beginning treatment.

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Butscher, who is from Hamburg but has lived in Britain with German husband Stephan for six years, had the transplant to halt the advance of osteoporosis which she was suffering as a result of an early menopause.

She received an ovary from her sister Dorothee and began ovulating naturally for the first time.

Egg Donation
The term ‘Egg Donation’ is commonly used to refer to the contribution of her eggs by a woman to another, who is incapable of producing her own.

Maja was born by elective caesarean, weighing a healthy 3.2 kilogrammes (7lbs 15oz).

Source-AFP
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